Labor Groups Launch Ad Campaign for Public Option
By Katharine Q. Seelye
September 15, 2009
Even though the White House has signaled that a so-called public option may not be necessary for a health-care overhaul, some interest groups are trying to pressure Democrats to keep it in play.
Health Care for America Now, made up of more than 1,000 labor unions and Democratic groups, is one of them. It started a new advertising campaign on Tuesday in which it advocates for a government-run health insurance plan by demonizing the health insurance industry, which opposes one.
H.C.A.N. is spending $1.2 million for a commercial to run for two weeks on national cable television and local Washington, D.C., stations. It has also started a round of print advertisements in publications that specialize in coverage of Congress.
The campaign’s theme: If the insurance companies win, you lose.
The commercial, entitled “How to Get Rich,” says the insurance industry is motivated by greed. The ad notes that one insurance company executive — Ronald Williams, chief executive of Aetna — received a compensation package of $24 million in 2008, while costs for insurance premiums rose faster than wages. The solution, the commercial suggests, is a public option.
http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/15/labor-groups-launch-ad-campaign-for-public-option/